With a U.S. oil blockade wreaking havoc on its power grid, a new report said Cuba might try to attack U.S. interests with drones.
A report from Axios revealed that Cuba has acquired about 300 military drones from Iran and Russia over the past three years and could be planning to use them to attack U.S. targets.
The report said U.S. vessels, or even Key West, Florida, which is 90 miles north of Havana, could be targets.
“When we think about those types of technologies being that close, and a range of bad actors from terror groups to drug cartels to Iranians to the Russians, it’s concerning,” a U.S. official said. “It’s a growing threat.”
‼️🇺🇸🇨🇺 U.S. intelligence believes Cuba has acquired more than 300 military drones from Russia and Iran.
According to a new report, Cuban officials have discussed potential strikes on the U.S. naval base at Guantánamo Bay, American warships, and even Key West, Florida, just 90… pic.twitter.com/Pq6e3ZfFcC
— War Radar (@War_Radar2) May 17, 2026
A CIA official shared the bottom line of CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s trip to Cuba on Thursday.
“Director Ratcliffe made clear that Cuba can no longer serve as a platform for adversaries to advance hostile agendas in our hemisphere,” that official said.
“The Western Hemisphere cannot be our adversaries’ playground,” the official added.
U.S. concerns were sparked by an uptick in Cuban efforts to acquire more drones and military equipment from Russia, the official said.
“We’ve long been concerned that a foreign adversary using that kind of location that close to our shores is highly problematic,” Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said during a congressional hearing on Tuesday.
🇨🇺🇺🇸 CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Havana to deliver a direct message from President Trump to the Cuban leadership.
Ratcliffe held high-level talks with Cuba’s Interior Minister, the head of Cuban intelligence, and Raúl Castro’s grandson, Raulito Rodríguez Castro.
The… pic.twitter.com/WNPGpqi3BE
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) May 15, 2026
The Cuban embassy said in a statement, “Like any country, Cuba has the right to defend itself against external aggression. It is called self-defense, and it is protected by International Law and the UN Charter.”
“Those from the U.S. who seek the submission and, in fact, the destruction of the Cuban nation through military aggression and war, do not waste a single moment fabricating pretexts, creating and spreading falsehoods, and distorting as extraordinary the logical preparation required to face a potential aggression,” the statement continued.
U.S. military and intelligence agencies have increased surveillance of Cuba in the past few weeks, according to The New York Times.
Officials said the surveillance is part of a pressure campaign against the island.
“Ratcliffe’s mission was to make Cuba a ‘do or die’ offer it ostensibly can’t refuse,” Peter Kornbluh, a co-author of “Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations Between Washington and Havana,” told CNN.
“It is the height of historical irony,” he said of Ratcliffe’s visit to the communist island.
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